Giant panda enjoys ice cake filled with bamboo
It's celebrations all round at Edinburgh Zoo as Yang Guang, the UK's only male giant panda, has reached the grand old age of 12.
Because no birthday party is complete without a cake, zoo keepers worked tirelessly to create a stunning two-tiered ice cake filled with bamboo.
The cake, which was given to Yang on Friday (14 August), was crowned with a large number '12', also fashioned out of bamboo.
Sharon Hatton, senior carnivore keeper at Edinburgh Zoo, said: "This is Yang Guang's third birthday at the zoo. It's the very first time we've made a cake out of ice for him and it was wonderful to see his instant reaction - he loved it! He was rolling the ice cake around, throwing it into his pond, rubbing his cold paws over his face after touching it and there were even a few footy moves in there too.
"Obviously he doesn't know its his birthday, that's a very human thing, but enrichment is an important part of animal's lives as it provides added psychological and physical stimulus. It's also enjoyable for staff and visitors alike to see natural behaviours elicited in Yang Guang."
Yang Guang was born in 2003 at the Bifenxia Panda Breeding Cente outside Ya'an, near the city of Chengdu in Sichuan Province.
He arrived at Edinburgh Zoo with his partner, Tian Tian, in December 2011 and they are the first adult giant pandas to have ever come out of China.
Image (C) Edinburgh Zoo
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